


Pokémon Retold: Red

by UndeadProwess



Series: Pokémon Retold [1]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Red & Green & Blue & Yellow | Pokemon Red Green Blue Yellow Versions
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Deaf Character, Disability, Gen, Graphic depictions of violence - Freeform, Hero's Journey, Novelization, Physical Disability, Retelling, Tagged for future chapters, Will continue Oct 1st, kanto, occasional strong language
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:00:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24092467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UndeadProwess/pseuds/UndeadProwess
Summary: He may be silent, but he's ready to show that he can be the loudest of them all. A retelling/novelization of Pokemon Red/Blue with Red as the main character. Prologue is being posted now but the story will be consistently updated in October. Follow/favorite if you like it so you'll be notified in the future! Although part of the Pokémon Retold series, this story will be designed to be read as a standalone story.
Series: Pokémon Retold [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1679419
Comments: 4
Kudos: 18





	1. Prologue: Ultimatum

**Author's Note:**

> Okay! So this story, I wanted to get the prologue out now while I had the drive for it, but the actual story won't start being posted regularly until October 1st. Then it'll be posted weekly at the latest but most likely several times a week. This is a retelling of Pokemon Red and Blue, a novelization if you will, with of course quite the few embellishments. I know I'm not the first to come up with this idea for Red, but I hope I still write it enjoyably enough nonetheless. See you guys in October! Be sure to follow/favorite to be notified when it starts getting posted again and check out my other retellings, Sword and Black!
> 
> Although part of the Pokémon Retold series, this story will be designed to be read as a standalone story.
> 
> Reviews/comments welcome!

Leaned between a cool door and its frame, Red carefully took in the details of the room ahead of him. Shadows danced across the floor as two figures animatedly discussed something. The room in question was actually an entire lab, but as it had once been a cabin converted to such use, it had no internal walls. The inside was sterile and white, and electronics lay haphazardly about it. Papers were tossed wildly across the surfaces as well. When the figures came into view ahead of him, he anchored himself in place, barely daring to breathe. He couldn't hear them, but he could see their hands and their lips as they spoke.

One was a woman with unkempt brown hair and a messy, deep violet blouse. It fluttered with her every jerky movement. She had a hefty denim bag strewn across her body. The person she was talking to, the professor, shook his head and waved his hands apologetically at her. He had windswept, white hair and a labcoat that looked like it was nearly as old as he was. Of course, Red knew who these people were; one was his mother, and the other was the esteemed Professor Oak. He also knew they were talking about him.

He had followed his mother after she had mysteriously left the house at six in the evening. She had told him to stay put and go to bed on time if she wasn't back when he was supposed to, but she had refused to tell him where she was going, and he had been affronted by her babying (bedtime… he was sixteen! What sixteen-year-old boy still had a bedtime?). So, Red logically had waited for her to leave and then a few minutes later picked his way after her. She would have been furious with him if she had known… he was quite glad that she and Professor Oak were talking too fervently with one another to pay him any mind.

"Please, Professor… grandson… help him, can't he?" He had a hard time picking out everything she said since she kept turning her back to him, but Red caught the gist of it.

"Miss," Professor Oak's lips motioned as he raised his hands, "I cannot be… …in this. Your son is handicapped. I cannot be… if something… wrong."

Red sighed. He knew that this would be about the discussion they'd have. He had begged his mother again and again to ask Professor Oak to give him a pokémon, to let him travel, but she had always refused as well. He had also tried many times—unsuccessfully, he might have added—to catch a Pidgey or something from the nearby routes with the odd Poké Ball he managed to get his hands on. Yet, always his mother claimed that it was too dangerous for him and that if he were to do it at all, he at least needed to be sixteen. Well, his birthday had come and went, and she had made no mention of it since. Red had been pestering her about it just earlier that day. Deflated at how she refused to humor his request, ignoring his questions about it altogether, he had given up and thought she had, too. But this proved she had not, and that, truth be told, made him feel a surge of warmth beneath the bitterness of it all. Privately, it was little moments like these that always made him sure his mother had his back—and it was not her that was the obstacle anymore.

It was Professor Oak.

"He just wants to travel like your grandson," his mother spat at Professor Oak quickly. The way her hair whipped across her shoulder and the ferocity at which her lips formed the words told Red it must have been quite loud.

"He is _deaf!"_ Professor Oak shot back and slammed his hands against a table. Red's mother recoiled and Red found himself clenching the doorknob hard between his fingers.

Professor Oak and his mother both whipped their heads to face the door. Red froze under their stare. Cursing himself internally for not bolting or being more careful, realizing he must have made the doorhandle creak, he guiltily pushed the door open at his mother's beckoning hand gesture.

"Redmond," she signed at him, "what are you doing over here?"

"I wanted to see where you went," Red quickly and effortlessly signaled back at her. He scowled at her a little at the use of his full name. "And it's Red. That's my trainer name."

"Redmond…"

He glared between the both of them, especially at Professor Oak, indescribably frustrated at the scientist for having banished that version of his mother that always had his side due to his refusal to help her—to help _him._ Red wasn't stupid. He knew that the version of his mother he truly trusted and loved was one that only came out when others weren't being doubtful of his capabilities, or they were alone. That supportive, headstrong woman was rare and fleeting, and Professor Oak had just chased her off again for this cautious, uncertain shell of his true mother. Furiously, Red began to move his hands, likely far too fast for Professor Oak, who had rudimentary knowledge at best of the language, could keep up with, "I _will_ be a trainer. Whether you help me or not. Either you'll help me, or I'll leave one day, and you won't know anything. You won't be able to help me at all. That will be way more dangerous than going out with a good starter and friends back home ever would be. I'm deaf, I'm _not_ defenseless!"

"Redmond, that's not funny, you know as well as I do that wild pokémon can be fierce and you not being able to hear them is a problem. Not to mention how there's no official translators in most cities. Nobody would be able to talk to you," his mother glowered at him and touched his shoulder, as if to cut off Professor Oak, as if to keep him and her son from having a conversation at all. Irritated with her, knowing this was not the real her, he shoved her off. He loved his mother, but he didn't love the woman she often masqueraded as.

"I don't need them to know how to do this"—Red flailed his hands in a display that would have been hilarious were he not so upset—"to talk to me! I can find other ways to talk! I can write! I'm not stupid!" _It's times like these where I wish I could just_ scream _at you all to get you to understand me._

His mother looked desperate now. She cast a glance at Professor Oak helplessly and then back at Red. "Red," she signed slowly, pleadingly, "listen to me, honey. I'm on your side."

"Are you?" _Are you, when you let everyone else control how you act around me?_ Red shook his head and huffed.

"Red," Professor Oak finally intervened, putting his hands cautiously between mother and son, "Threatening to run off like that is a very big deal." He annunciated his words slowly and looked straight at Red. He was trying to sign as he did, but Red tuned that out, as he was painfully wrong and jarring about it. Reading lips had become second nature to Red anyway, and he had run into the scientist enough to learn the way his mouth formulated words due in part to Red's friendship with Professor Oak's grandson, Gary—or, as Red preferred to call him by his trainer name, Blue. Professor Oak looked to his mother. "But if he's going to do that, Miss, then… I guess I'll give him... I can't bear the… of him running off without any… to protect himself at all. Even a Pidgey can be vicious when provoked."

Red almost couldn't believe his eyes as the professor kept moving his lips. Beaming widely, he rushed to Professor Oak and grabbed at his wrists. Red had a habit of being a little more hands-on than most his age likely would be. Others had told him it helped offer stimulation that hearing otherwise would. Of course, he had no way of knowing; this felt normal enough. "You mean it?" Red mouthed back at him incredulously, since his hands were occupied. "You'd really do that?"

"You've forced my hand, don't thank me," Professor Oak mouthed stiffly, coldly, and shook his head bitterly. He pulled his palms from Red's grip and took a step away, clasping his hands behind his back. _"I_ think you're making a mistake. But come to my lab tomorrow. I'll call Blue to come, too. Maybe he can help you, but don't expect him to hold your hand. You don't get to put him in danger for your silly fantasy."

Dejected by the lack of excitement and harsh reminder of how most saw his lack of hearing, Red shuffled backward. A burden. That's what his lack of hearing was viewed as, and although everyone kept forcing down his throat that the biggest reason he couldn't leave on his own was due to dangerous pokémon, he knew the deeper, more insidious reason was that others in Kanto felt that it would be selfish for him to leave on his own. Due to his lack of hearing, he was a liability in traveling parties, easy prey for wild pokémon; his companionship could endanger others with him due to having significantly less awareness of his surroundings. Remembering that had made that achievement of finally getting Professor Oak to agree to give him a starting pokémon feel a lot less victorious than he had thought it would.

He wanted to be ecstatic, to scream his excitement to the world, but the two adults in the room looked as if they had just lost a best friend, and he knew any shout from him would invite panic into the mix. Everyone always looked at him like he had suddenly grown a second head whenever he spoke out loud, another reason he communicated primarily with hand signals. His mother was even tearing up. He huffed in aggravation and stamped a foot. It sent a tingling vibration up his calf briefly. "Well, I'm thanking you whether you like it or not, Professor Oak, and I'll be here tomorrow! I'll show you!" After he signed that, he booked it back out of the laboratory, heading straight home. He had no way of knowing his mother was following him, or that she had shot Professor Oak an insult just before doing so, practically snarling at him for daring to say all he had to Red's face.

All Red knew was that after years of everyone treating him as a child for his lack of hearing, he would go to Professor Oak's lab the following day, he would claim a partner pokémon for himself, and he'd make his mother, Professor Oak, and everyone else regret the days they had told him he couldn't handle a journey through Kanto's gym challenge. He'd take Kanto by _storm_ if he had to—and _alone,_ if everyone else saw him as so much of a burden. He didn't need to talk to anyone to prove he was just as capable as they were.

He'd show them. Nobody could stop him then. His mother had often told him he was as stubborn as Nidoking; well, he supposed he was ready to prove her right.

* * *

Blue hadn't been able to BELIEVE his ears when his gramps had called to give him the news that Red was receiving a starting pokémon the following day! It had been such inexplicably random news, or so he had thought. The planets could have aligned, and Blue wouldn't have thought his gramps would have had it in him to give Red a starting pokémon! And yet, he had agreed!

Sure, it had sounded as if Gramps had done it simply to get Red and his mother to leave him alone, and sure, that wasn't the nicest reason ever, but who cared! Red was getting to _leave!_ Finally, at last, the only thing binding Blue to stay near Pallet Town would soon be broken! He had had his Squirtle for a few months at that point, but had lingered nearby, claiming he was merely taking his time and learning more about the wildlife by observation. With a scientist grandfather, it was quite believable for most, though Gramps himself and his sister, Daisy, saw right through his claims. They never questioned it, but he could see it in the way they would narrow their eyes briefly at him, then give a slight shrug and grunt, then move along in the conversation.

Oh, he knew Red would likely need some sort of aid with him at all times throughout his travels and to assist him at the gym challenges themselves, but he didn't care. Blue was sure they'd still have a good time anyway, and at least with an aid, he wouldn't be solely responsible for Red's safety. While Blue didn't think Red was incapable by any means, even in his rudimentary travels, he had had the misfortune of running into territorial Fearow, hungry Arcanine, tricky Ninetales, and ferocious Beedrill, a couple of which he and Squirtle, Cyan, and Eevee, Luna, had barely escaped from with their hides all intact.

Regardless, Blue was so excited, that upon learning the news from the phone downstairs of his home, he had dropped the clunky device and left it dangling from the kitchen wall in his hurry to go bolting around the corner that led to the stairwell, and then up aforementioned stairs to inform his sister, Daisy. Oh, Daisy wasn't Red's biggest fan, but then again, _nobody_ was exactly Red's biggest fan aside from him, and Blue just had to tell SOMEBODY!

Rapping his knuckles on her door (which was shut, as per usual), Blue announced in a singsong voice, _"Dai_ -sy! Just got off the phone with Gramps!"

Silence. Why was she so difficult? With Mom and Dad always gone, couldn't she afford to be just a little more talkative? They were practically only around every other weekend, and even then, they were always so gruff and distant. Didn't Daisy want to talk to people?

"Red's finally being given a starting pokémon!"

…Still nothing…

Chancing a joke, he cheekily teased, "You'll finally be rid of me for good!"

"You're… what?" she finally croaked, in a dry, cracking voice. Immediately feeling less exuberant, Blue frowned and fell flat-footed against the wooden floor. As he deliberated what to reply with, Daisy cracked open her door, peering out from behind it with watery brown eyes and feathery, dusky hair framing her head. She looked as if she hadn't brushed it recently. "What do you mean?"

"Well, Red's going out, I'm probably gonna travel with him. Why, you gonna miss me?" Blue almost nervously teased. Daisy was so… strange. Why couldn't she just have fun? Why was she always so serious?

She paused, then after a long few seconds of awkward silence followed by a shuddery huff from her, she withdrew into her room, shutting the door behind her with a slam far too loud for how little the door had been opened. At her retreat, Blue had almost instinctively lunged for the doorknob, grunting as Daisy shoved it shut despite his best efforts to push it open. "Daisy, wait!" Blue exclaimed. "What's wrong?" He shook the doorknob. Frustrated, he slapped it in the end, ignoring the dull ache that blossomed in his palm. "Why do you always do this? Why can't you just talk to me?" he angrily snapped at her.

Nothing.

"Daisy, open the door, for Mew's sake!" _Please. Why do you do this? You scare me so much doing this all the time, Daisy…_

He waited, heart pounding, for her to open the door, but she refused. Finally, fed up, Blue growled and kicked at the base of the door. "Fine!" he spat. "I'll just have Cyan or Luna break it open! Then you _can't_ ever shut it on me again!"

When she still didn't do anything about the door, Blue swallowed hard, feeling a panic swell in his chest. He snatched Luna's Poké Ball and pitched the basic, red and white sphere at the base of the door. The Eevee uncurled from a cute little ball, stretching her fluffy tail out and flexing her claws to readjust to the outside world. Blinking soft brown eyes back up at him, Luna quickly stood up and worriedly flicked her massive ears, picking up on Blue's unease. "Luna," he swallowed hard, "Swift, on the doorknob." At his order, he shook the doorknob of Daisy's door, and then jumped back.

Luna cocked her head at it, then dropped to a lunging position and opened her jaws. A barrage of plasmatic, white stars flew from her jaws and the door flew open in an instant. There was a soft yelp from inside the room, and Luna slunk inside as Blue burst into the room. He immediately stumbled and had to catch his balance as he realized he was staggering over a collapsed pile of books. Looking beneath his feet, he realized he couldn't see the carpeted floor beneath the tons of paperbacks.

"Get out!" Daisy hissed at him brokenly. Jerking his head up to follow her voice, he saw that she was on her bed in the farthest corner of the room from the door, which was lit only by a lamp. The space near her door was lit by a smaller light in the ceiling, rather than the main light in the center of her room. Come to think of it, her room was exceptionally large… it looked more like a master suite than regular bedroom. Shaking away those thoughts, Blue picked his way carefully over the many piles of books, dirty clothes, drawing pads, and pencils scattered around the floor, to Daisy's thrashed bed. The closer he drew, the shriller her voice became, and the more she retreated into her bed. "Gary, get out, please…" she was begging as he finally reached her.

Shaking his head, Blue quavered, "Daisy… what… what's wrong…?"

With most of her shrouded in shadow thanks to the placement of the nearby lamp on a short bedside table, her brown eyes glittered in the dimness, and he could see she had her right hand clasped firmly over her left inner forearm. When he dared to move slightly closer, she flinched, clenching her eyes shut tightly, and then lashed that left hand out at him to point at the door. When she did, the quick ferocity of the movement slung something hot and wet at his face, stunning Blue in place and cutting him off. Whatever he had been intending to say to plead with her some more died in his throat, and, with blood roaring in his ears, he raised a hand to wipe whatever she had slung at him off himself.

The fluid on his fingertips was a familiar, viscous red and he realized then what the odd, tangy scent in the air was. Backpedaling in shock, he realized in a horrible instant that the hand she had clasped over her arm had been to keep a wound of some sort hidden. Then, whether it was her shifting on the bed or his frantic movements to get away from her, he saw something silver gleaming on her bedspread. When his eyes caught sight of it—which, he assumed it was a knife or a pair of scissors—she quickly scrambled to cover it with her bed's messy blankets. Beyond alarmed, Blue yelped, "Daisy, what are you doing? Stop that!"

"Get _out,_ Gary!" she adamantly repeated, voice crumbling under the force of her commands. She hung her head, as if she didn't have the strength to lift it to snap at him again, and lazily brought her hands up to grab at her head. "It doesn't matter. Just get out. Just get _out."_

Overwhelmed and shocked, Blue just rapidly shook his head. "But I don't… why? Why are you doing that?!"

"Leave me alone, Gary…" Daisy pleaded without looking up. "Mom and Dad left—yeah, they come home some weekends, but they're basically gone—and they left me with you, and"—her voice abruptly changed to an angry bark—"if I wanted to have a kid, I'd have gone out and fucking had one!" Sobbing, given her tattered voice and squared shoulders, she sniffled, "Yet, I don't _want_ you to go, because then I have nobody, and Mom and Dad don't want me working for some fucking reason, because somehow they make more than enough to keep us afloat and they think me working is inapprop—I don't _know,_ Gary! Just leave me alone! Get out! Go away! Go with Red! Stay away from me!"

"This is crazy," Blue whimpered, recoiling at the sharpness of her bladed words. He had cringed at the way she had declared that, if she had wanted a kid, she would have had one. He knew his sister was much older than he was, but… had she really loathed watching after him that much? That thought had made him swallow a rising ball of bile in the pit of his throat and guilt surged, but then… she had also exclaimed that she didn't want him to leave. Even so, both avenues made him conclude that, either way, her self-inflicted slashing could be boiled down to one thing: him. Was… he really the root of it all? Voice trembling, he practically mewled, "Daisy… please, stop… I don't have to go, or… I _can_ go… I don't know… what do you… _want_ me to do…? Just… please, anything to stop that—"

"Go!" she cruelly snarled at him all over again, raising her left arm to point at her door again. More blood speckled the bed below her and the floor and books nearby. Luna gave a series of whines and hid behind Blue, her tail tucked between her legs, as well. _"Go_ , Gary. Go, leave me alone. Please. Just—just go."

Still feeling panicked but more pressingly feeling as if the room's walls were starting to converge on him, Blue swallowed against a dry tongue of cotton and nodded vigorously. "Y-yeah… fine, yes…" He felt a deep pain rake at his chest he didn't understand. Why did whatever was wrong with her have to come back to him so perfectly? Shivering, he lowered his head apologetically and skittishly picked his way out of her room. "I—I'm sorry, Daisy, I'm gonna… I'm gonna go…"

She said nothing. Blue had no idea where he would go, but the thought of staying in that house that night was unfathomable, so he scurried down the stairs. He felt like he was still in shock, even as guilt wracked him again and again. Even if he didn't have anywhere to go that evening, he just had to go.

He had to talk to Gramps, maybe to Red, maybe to—it didn't matter. He just had to go and talk to people. Anywhere but that house, anyone but Daisy; anywhere but that beautiful, well-cared for home that would have made anyone assume he and his family had it perfectly together. He could still feel her blood on his cheek and that thought alone was enough to make him want to vomit and make the place feel like anything but home.

That certainly hadn't been the sendoff for his regional adventure with childhood friend, Red, he had hoped for, for sure, he thought bitterly…


	2. Enemy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Blue learns that Red's going on his journey alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, some notes!
> 
> 1) This story is set BEFORE any of the other Retold stories. This means that the descriptions of Kanto you may read in other Retold stories (such as in Ultra Sun) are set way after this one. Pokemon Retold: Red is set 22 years before Pokemon Retold: Ultra Sun.
> 
> 2) This story may not get updated as consistently as Ultra Sun. While I am updating it periodically now, Ultra Sun still is taking priority since it was supposed to have been finished over a month ago.
> 
> 3) THE PROLOGUE WAS MAJORLY OVERHAULED. If you haven't, please REREAD THE PROLOGUE. Thank you and apologies for the inconvenience!
> 
> 4) On the same tangent as rereading the prologue, although it gets pretty intense pretty fast, I don't think I will ever need to rate this story as M. This one should stay safely rated T.
> 
> Thank all of you for reading and for reviews and all the other support this story has already been shown despite having not even really started yet! I even got some PMs asking if it had been delayed or if I still planned to work on it! Rest assured, that while the start may be slow with updates, they will come! I just figured working on this as well as Ultra Sun may help me get both done, as Ultra Sun just takes so much energy to write for, and Red is a little more straightforward, it's kinda a way to give myself a break. I hope you enjoy!

Red was full of exhilaration and an almost spiteful determination, and the combination made it impossible to sleep the night following Professor Oak's agreement to give him a starting pokémon. He had wanted to find Blue and celebrate with him somehow, to talk about what they might do once they were finally out there on the open road together, but his mother had sternly kept him home, claiming that he would have more than enough opportunity to run wherever he so pleased after the next day. He supposed she was right in that, but she was still acting as defensive and fearful as she did around others over him, even once they were alone. That was so frustrating! When he had been preparing for bed, she had ghosted into his bedroom with her arms folded and lips pursed.

"Goodnight, Redmond. You'd best get a good rest tonight, because tomorrow's a busy day," she had mouthed to him. "You need to be on your highest alert—"

He had looked away from her at the use of his full name, uninterested in whatever else she had to say. Irritably signing back at her, he said, "I don't understand why you let them make you act like this. I'm sorry, Mom, I know you'll say I'm just being rude or disrespectful, but I don't understand." He bitterly crossed his arms and gave her a sorrowful look through upturned, brown eyes. He tossed an errant strand of black hair from his face with a flick of his chin. Mouthing back at her desperately, he found himself again frustrated that he couldn't just scream at her, anything to make her understand. "You tell me sometimes how I'm still just as capable as everyone else, maybe even more so with my other senses, and then sometimes, you do… _this._ When I'm out there, I'll show you that you don't have to be like _this_ ever. Okay? _Ever."_

Looking a bit confused, she floundered for something to say. Finally, she settled on signing carefully, "Red, you don't have to prove anything to me… You shouldn't have to prove anything, to anyone. You don't worry about how I behave. I do what I do to keep you safe and taken care of. That's my job."

"I hate that," Red retorted with a few rapid flicks of his wrists, then turned over into his bed.

The next day, he had decided to simply avoid talking to her. What was the point? She had told him he didn't need to prove anything to her or anyone else, but that was laughable. She could actually hear the things others said about him, if anyone should have known why he needed to prove himself once and for all, it should have been her. In his room, he had stood in front of a mirror on the back of his door, and adjusted his red and white ballcap and jacket, before tossing on his tan backpack. He took a deep breath. The bag wasn't exactly designed for regional travel like that a pokémon trainer would embark upon, it was designed to carry books and various writing utensils, but it was the best he owned for the job. With a confident, smug grin, he brought a hand up to his chest and patted it lightly. Well, even if the backpack looked a little small on him, he still looked the part! Nobody would be able to know anything about his 'disability'—blech, he hated that word—if they didn't have to. Which, he had already decided, nobody new he met had to know about that. He didn't know yet how he was going to pull that off, but that was what he had decided on. It had been hard enough to just get out of Pallet Town, what other obstacles could impose themselves on him after he finally was free of these walls if people knew? Not to mention, well… the idea of others having first impressions that weren't tainted by his lack of hearing was a tantalizing one, indeed.

It seemed Mom had eventually given up trying to convince him to talk to her, though, as she had when she had first realized he was giving her the silent treatment. After a while, she merely came to his room and wordlessly waved her hand for him to follow her. After packing some things into his bag, including a map, some money, and a list of supplies he needed to get along the way (one of which, he had laughed to realize, was a bigger backpack), she had silently walked him to Professor Oak's laboratory.

Practically giddy with excitement, Red had darted inside and beamed when he spotted Blue seated on a bench in the back of the converted cabin. He had his head leaned over on a table next to it, looking exhausted, with an Eevee curled in his lap and a Squirtle tucked beneath the chair. Luna and Cyan, Red recognized. Snickering as Red lowered himself in front of his friend, he pushed on Blue's shoulder, then shook it slightly when his friend still didn't move. Finally, Blue stirred, giving a massive yawn as he blinked sleepiness away from pale, brown eyes. Before he realized what was going on, Blue haphazardly shoved Red's hands away and mouthed, "Go away. 'm tired."

"What'd you do, stay up all night?" Red asked with his hands, though he realized Blue wouldn't have known, since he had already shut his eyes again. Rolling his eyes, Red thought to shake him awake again, but a hefty hand landed on his left shoulder and then spun him around to bring him face to face with Professor Oak. Smiling a little more nervously this time at the intimidating, cold expression on the old man's tired, grizzled face, Red straightened his back and swallowed hard. "Yes?" he mouthed back at the professor.

"Gary's had a long night," Professor Oak explained slowly, stiffly. Gesturing toward a nearby machine with three Poké Balls hidden under a glass barrier, he added, "So, leave him alone and choose your starting pokémon. Then, you're free to go as you please."

Red rushed to the machine, inhibitions forgotten right away, but Blue had scrambled to his feet. Looking up at his friend as Mom and a lab hand assisted in opening the machine with the Poké Balls inside, Red saw that Blue had his eyes stretched wide in worry, and he was asking, "Wait, Red's going alone? Like, to do the gym challenge, alone?"

"Yes, that's what he wants," Professor Oak curtly replied, folding his arms. The way he glared at the machine made Red suddenly feel a bit hesitant. "And nobody would be stupid enough to put their lives on the line to follow him wherever he pleases to go, nor is he entitled to have someone do that for him. So, yes. He's going alone, Blue."

Red sensed that his mother had shuffled her feet, and when he glanced up at her, she was glowering hatefully right back at the professor. "Professor," he saw her growl, given the way her throat moved slightly with her words, "that is enough. You have made your thoughts clear."

Yelping, Red panicked as someone grabbed his shoulders and spun him around again. Blue this time. Nose-to-nose with his friend, he frantically tried to shove the other away, frightened by the uncharacteristic, wild look in his eyes. "Blue, let go!" Red tried to hiss at him. He could tell he had made an audible noise as he mouthed the words, based on how Blue flinched slightly before saying whatever he had wanted to say.

"You can't go alone!" Blue seemed to exclaim, practically shaking him. "Are you nuts?"

Red just fell still and blinked. "Are you stupid?" he mouthed back after a moment, cracking a small smile. "I'm not really going alone. At least… I didn't think so… Aren't you coming with me…?" _I… thought that was what we agreed on, right? I was excited about that idea… I thought that's why you hung around after getting Cyan from Oak…_

Faltering, Blue let go of Red and took a step back. His Eevee circled his feet and curiously cocked her head and flicked her ears, looking up at her trainer worriedly. Shaking his head, Blue asked, "Alone? Just… you and me, traveling alone?"

"Uh, yeah?" Red signed back. "That's… what we talked about, right?"

"Red, no, no, no," Blue struggled to sign in his panic. "I know what we said, but—"

Frustrated, Red crossed his arms and tapped his right foot. Angrily mouthing, he asked, "Why are you acting like this? So _what_ if we're alone? What happened to you always being by my side or whatever, huh? I don't get you right now, Blue!"

"I can't be traveling alone with you, Red, no, no, no," Blue rapidly replied, making it difficult for Red to keep up with his lips. "I can't be responsible for you alone." He turned around and hugged himself, squaring his shoulders. His Squirtle waddled after him then and seemed to almost worriedly nudge Luna. The Eevee shook her head at Cyan, as if to sadly tell him, 'No.' What she was replying to, Red couldn't be sure, but…

That didn't matter. He stomped a foot again. "What?!" he felt like yelling, but of course, all that came was a breathy puff of air with his angrily moving lips. He was only further frustrated by the fact Blue was no longer facing him, but that didn't keep him from carrying on with his silent fury. "'Responsible' for me?" Incredulously shaking his head, Red clenched his jaw. _Has he always felt 'responsible' for me? He expected me to go out with someone chaperoning my every movement? Am I nothing more than just another pokémon to him or something, something he has to take care of, like his Eevee or Squirtle? I'm not a pokémon, not a_ pet!

Ignoring everyone else in the room—man, it was too hard to keep up with so many moving mouths at once, anyway—he whirled back to the machine and snatched a Poké Ball up. It had an orange flame painted at the top, but he had failed to even pay attention to that, merely grabbing one of the Poké Balls at complete random. Had he been paying attention to his mother, the lab hand, or Professor Oak, he would have seen them all exchange a worried look amongst one another as they realized he had chosen Charmander—the notoriously most difficult of the approved Kantonian starting pokémon to train. What would have been a fun challenge to a normal trainer, they clearly believed would be an insurmountable obstacle to Red.

Yet, unfazed by them, Red marched around to the front of Blue and waved the Poké Ball in his face, forming words with curled lips that looked something akin to a quiet snarl. "You are _not_ responsible for me, you never have been, and never will be. If you want to be like everyone else here, too, _fine!"_ Red clutched the Poké Ball tightly and felt his hands quiver with the adrenaline and a ball of emotions rose in his throat. Losing his fervor for a moment, he swallowed hard and looked just below Blue's eyes, unable to meet them but still wanting to be able to see anything he had to say. "I thought you were different, Blue. All this time… just for you to turn around and show me you're no different than Professor Oak, or any of the other kids here that can't even seem to look at me?"

Blue shrank away and lowered his head, as if wishing he could disappear. "Red, stop talking like that," he pleadingly mouthed as he embarrassedly flicked his gaze between Professor Oak and the lab hand. That made Red's blood boil only more. _Do I embarrass him?_ Red thought fumingly as Blue carried on. "And it's not even like that, just, it's dangerous, and—and—people get hurt, and I'm not… I _can't_ keep people from hurting themselves." He met Red's eyes despite Red's best effort to avoid doing so. "I just don't want you to—"

"Why do you think I will?" Red wanted to cut him off with, but Blue just kept talking over him.

"—get hurt, and what if I can't stop something bad from happening? Red, this is—"

 _"LET ME TALK!"_ Red howled, startling everyone else. Truthfully, he wasn't sure if they had actually heard what he had intended to say, but he was sure the message was still clear given the way everyone stared at him in silence. Panting, Red raised his closed fist to show them all the Poké Ball. "Whatever is in this Poké Ball, it's going to help me become the best pokémon trainer I can be, and I can be just as good as anyone else. I will defeat the Kanto gyms, I will take on the Indigo League—I will do _whatever I need to do_ to show you all I am _just_ as capable as _he_ is." Red pointed a finger at Blue and angrily narrowed his eyes at his friend. "Just as capable as _you_ are." _I can't believe you, Blue. I just… can't._

After looking shocked for a moment, Blue shook his head and snapped, "You idiot, I'm not against you!"

"Could have fooled me," Red retorted immediately, bristling.

"Redmond," Mom intervened, stepping between them and waving a hand at him. Apologetically looking down, she mouthed, "Maybe, if Blue isn't wanting to go—"

"No," Red spat at her breathlessly, jumping away and clutching his new Poké Ball close. He couldn't believe this. He felt so… so… _betrayed!_ Blue had turned against him for some reason, Professor Oak had never had any faith in him to begin with, and then his mother was acting as if his idea to leave was wishful thinking now that Blue had reacted as he had! _I'm not just an extension of him!_ Red thought furiously as he swept a blazing, brown glare across the entire room. Outraged, he signed, "No! I'm leaving! _Without_ him if that's how he wants it!"

His mother and Professor Oak both lurched forwards, as if intending to grab him, as Blue took yet another step away, but Red noticed right away. He whirled around and bolted out of the lab—and for the first time he could remember, he flew down those dusty streets and out into the open fields of Route 1 without someone looming over his shoulder, cautiously moderating his every step. The dirt roads had quickly given way to overgrown patches of grass with the occasional tree stump protruding from the ground, with the only thing indicating the path that would lead to another town or city being the receded treeline. He had been told many routes in Kanto were more or less just paths of cleared trees, that they were still otherwise wild hinterland; with that thought in mind, Red paused a decent way into the route and raised his nose, drinking in the fresh, dewy scent in the air.

It was still pretty early in the morning, and now that he was alone, away from Professor Oak's lab and their demeaning words, Red felt a shiver creep up his spine and he gnawed his lower lip, surveying his surroundings uncertainly. Despite all of his declarations, it would have been a lie to say he wasn't afraid of traveling alone… He wanted to prove that he could, merely because it hurt to have it shoved down his throat that it was impossible, but oh, what he would have given to at least have had Blue with him for the first few days until he found his rhythm…

Shakily, and constantly scouring his environment for trouble, Red picked his way a little further into the route so as to not get followed by anyone. Once confident he was far enough away from Pallet that he wouldn't be located so easily, he tossed his new friend from its Poké Ball, in a patch of shallow, short grass, far from the trees making up the route's perimeter (as he was sure that would act as easy cover for any wild, more dangerous pokémon than the Pidgey, Rattata, and Caterpie he had seen in the tall grass here and there). Spilled from the red light of the Poké Ball, a Charmander stood tall, curiously examining its surroundings as it held its tail close to its belly to cradle the tiny flame at the end.

Glancing around himself one last time to check for anything worth worrying about and finding nothing, Red leaned down in front of the pokémon and made slow gestures with his hands. "Charmander," he signed, smiling warmly at the little pokémon. "I had no idea which I had chosen, to be honest, but man, you look awesome."

The Charmander, of course, only confusedly cocked its head back at him. Blinking blue eyes dubiously, the pokémon slowly let go of its tail, letting it sweep across the damp grass and leaned forward to sniff interestedly at his hands. Red instinctively went to move them to say something else, and the Charmander snorted, grabbing at his left hand to inspect it, as if trying to figure out what it was he was doing. That made Red laugh.

"I don't have anything _in_ my hands," he informed the Charmander by mouthing, even though he knew the pokémon wouldn't understand. Carefully withdrawing a hand to try and sign at the pokémon again, Red quickly realized how big of a communication barrier he was going to have to cross. He had always known this would likely be the most difficult part of his adventure, but between the hurt from the confrontation with Blue, the panic at being alone in an environment where he constantly had to look over his shoulder to reassure himself of his own safety, and now the fear he wouldn't be able to cooperate with his pokémon if something bad did happen, he was quickly feeling so, very overwhelmed… But he couldn't give up. He just couldn't. He couldn't prove them right. Making the gesture for 'you,' Red then pointed at the Charmander. "You, Charmander," Red was trying to explain, to make any sort of connection.

Yet, Charmander only lowered its head cautiously, nervously sweeping its tail back and forth across the ground. Red could tell that the difficulty in communication and his own anxiety was starting to freak the little one out. Losing his patience and wanting to hurry up and get somewhere safer, he snatched the Charmander up ungraciously from the ground, and decided to simply keep walking. The more he walked, the more he felt that Blue was probably right, and the worse he felt. He was too stubborn to turn around and go back, but every step felt harder and harder than the last, and he had no idea how far down the route he was before he simply stalled in his tracks. He was still cradling the anxious Charmander that he couldn't communicate with, but his grip had loosened slightly.

Just as he was thinking that he should swallow his pride and suck up how badly it would hurt to return to Pallet and suck up to Blue, telling him he had been right, in hopes he would change his mind and come with him to help, he felt the Charmander stir wildly in his arms. Looking down, he saw that the pokémon's eyes were wide as saucers, and it scratched him in its fervor, forcing Red to yelp and drop it to the ground. He watched as the Charmander bolted behind a nearby rock, and then, Red saw why. Tracing the pokémon's line of sight, he saw a Fearow diving at them from the trees, talons outstretched to grab him, and he only just barely rolled out of the pokémon's way. He didn't have time to think in words as visceral tremors of fear wracked his body.

The Fearow had missed him and as such, landed in a heap of feathers and talons nearby as it collided with the ground. Even so, Red only had seconds to scramble back to his feet and try to pick up his Charmander before the Fearow was back in the sky, shaking its bronze feathers clean and clicking its beak irritably. Thinking fast, Red decided that he would have to chance getting close to the treeline, because the Fearow was too big and clunky of a bird to fly low in the trees, and he hoped that it would eventually lose sight of him. _Other pokémon I need to worry about could have homes in the trees, but at least I'll lose the Fearow,_ he thought desperately.

Yet, his foot caught something in the grass as he was making his way there, sending him careening to his side just at the base of a tree. His Charmander rolled out of his grasp with a series of pained squeaks, and then dove into the forestry, hiding in a bush. His entire body aching and feeling stunned, Red was slow to get up this time, and a flash of pain in his calf sent him back to the ground all over again after he had made some progress. He looked up in time to see the Fearow honing in on him again with those cruel talons, and he curled into a ball, expecting to feel the slashing pain of those claws within the next few seconds, internally reprimanding himself again and again for having not listened to anyone…

But it never came. He felt a thud from the earth and he slowly uncurled, panting for breath, as he observed what had transpired around him. To his shock, the Fearow was bowled onto its back against the ground, flaring its wings wildly to try to get back up, while Blue stood a short distance away. Both his Eevee and Squirtle were poised for battle in front of him. The two pokémon marched forward together and, with a joint Swift and Water Gun, drove the Fearow away for good, given the way it snapped its beak angrily at them and then flew high into the air, out of sight.

Sitting upright, Red wiped the nervous sweat that had built up on his forehead away, then, trembling, signed at Blue, "I'm so glad to see you…"

Glowering back at Red and looking so much like Professor Oak in that moment, Blue coldly mouthed back, "Don't thank me. Don't be grateful for my advice _now,_ Red." Stiffening his shoulders and seeming to call for his pokémon to follow him, Blue then shot Red more harsh words. "You want to believe I'm against you, _fine._ If that's what it takes for you to realize you have to give this up, that I can't keep you from hurting yourself, then _fine."_ He stopped, and turned to face Red. "I just wanted that Fearow to go away so _I_ could kick your ass."

Shocked, Red couldn't find the strength to stand or the words to speak. Finally, all he could muster was a weakly signed, "What?"

"We're battling, Mr. Best Pokémon Trainer," Blue mouthed in a sneer. "So, get up, and get your Charmander out. Let's go."

 _What the hell is_ wrong _with him?!_ Red wanted to scream. His retrospective thoughts that Blue might have been right from earlier were dashed in a furious, betrayed surge of emotions as he staggered to his feet. _The only damn person in the world I felt might have had my back or have wanted to help me, and at the last minute he just—gah, I don't GET IT!_ Red stamped a foot and looked over his shoulder, at the hiding, frightened Charmander. Making that same gesture he had done earlier toward the pokémon, he mouthed again, "You, Charmander." Desperately hoping the pokémon would get the message, he waited patiently to see what it would do.

Charmander cautiously poked its head further from the bushes, and looked like it would step out, but then with a glance at Blue, it retreated even further.

"What good is a pokémon trainer that can't even talk to his pokémon?" Blue signed at Red with a snort. "Red, this is _stupid._ Don't you see that?"

Wrenching his eyes away from Blue again, Red focused intently on that Charmander. _Please, he thought pleadingly, please, please, please… Just come out…_ He made the gesture again. "You, Charmander," and then tapped his foot on the ground again. Then again, and again, and again.

Just when Blue was saying some contemptuous thing about dragging him back to Pallet along with his pathetic Charmander, the Charmander, at long last, timidly picked its way from the bushes and stood where Red had tapped his foot numerous times before. Looking back up at its trainer with almost expectant, round eyes, as if waiting for confirmation what it had done was what Red wanted, Red realized that the Charmander had not been _unwilling_ to defend him or help him—it had just been confused. It, like the other two starting pokémon, Squirtle and Bulbasaur, was obedient and interested in pleasing its trainer. Bending down, Red stroked the pokémon's head and nodded, in an almost cartoonishly exaggerated way. The praise relaxed the Charmander and it poised itself for battle, just as Red had hoped it would.

"Maybe you got it to come out, but you won't win," Blue tauntingly mouthed back at him, "I have a type advantage and two pokémon, and you have one. What are you going to prove?"

Red's lip twitched, but he said nothing. He didn't know what he would prove by battling Blue, but if Blue didn't want to actually talk to him and wanted them to be enemies, then fine—they'd _be_ enemies.

…Even if he really, really didn't want it to be that way, and the thought made his chest ache in a way he didn't quite understand…


	3. Questions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red bonds with Charmander.

Blue took his stance a few feet away, and Red took his, taking a deep breath and looking over Blue's Squirtle as he motioned for Cyan to take a poised position for battle. Red glanced back at his Charmander and offered it an encouraging smile, then tapped his foot ahead of himself, and made the gesture for 'Ember.' Immediately following the gestured phrase, he made a show of blowing air from his mouth, placing his hands above and below, to try to demonstrate the attack. He was sure it looked downright silly, but he didn't care. While Blue raised a brow and cockily snorted, issuing an order for a Water Gun to Cyan, Red repeated the actions a few times to try to get Charmander to understand. The pokémon watched him closely, interrupted only when Cyan shot a volley of water, and then, it finally happened. Charmander, after narrowly avoiding the attack from Cyan, whirled around and poised itself on all fours. The fire on its tail blazed a bit brighter, and it shot a weak plume of flame from its jaws. The little fireball landed on Cyan's shell, and fizzled out quickly, doing little more than irritating the Squirtle.

"You do remember that Fire-type is weak to Water-type, right?" Blue mouthed at him with his lips pulled into that nasty sneer.

 _Yes, I do, idiot, but do you remember Ember can burn opponents?_ Red mutinously thought about shooting back, but ultimately kept it to himself. Blue didn't want to listen anyway. That just… why did it have to feel so bittersweet? _I know I can't beat you head on. You've had Cyan longer than I've had my Charmander, you have a type advantage, and two pokémon. I have to use some strategy. Maybe if you knew me at all, you'd realize that, Blue._

Red made the gesture for Ember again at his Charmander, and once again, tapped the ground once ahead of himself with his right foot, in an almost lunging posture. To his surprise, he didn't have to do the demonstration afterward for Charmander to get the hint. As soon as he lunged forward and tapped the earth, the pokémon lunged forward at Cyan and blew an Ember, this time, much closer to the opponent's face. Surprised by the direct attack, Cyan scrabbled with his front legs at his face, and shook away the burning cinders there. Charmander paused next to him, as if hesitating, and then shot Red an uncertain look.

Almost smirking, Red raised his hand and made the gesture for 'Scratch,' followed by a demonstration of him lashing a hand forward, as if striking his nails down a chalkboard. Charmander bounced excitedly in place, and then turned on Cyan again, who was only beginning to recover from the particularly painful Ember. That made Red smirk—it seemed his idea of trying to get a burn in had succeeded! Yet, unfortunately for Charmander, the pause to try to understand what Red wanted it to do next allowed Cyan to hurl a Water Gun point-blank at it before it was able to rake its tiny claws down Cyan's exposed head, or Red was able to find a way to try to warn it.

Charmander was bowled over by the force of the blast and tucked its tail close to its body to preserve the tailflame. Weakly, it attempted to stand back up, while Blue ordered more Water Guns. When Cyan reared its head back to prepare the shot, Red quickly stamped the ground in front of him and pointed at it with is right hand; he was so, so grateful when Charmander caught on and jumped out of the way, landing where Red had pointed for it to go.

"Red!" Blue snapped in frustration, his irritation making his lips harder to read than normal. "This is stupid! Why are we doing this right now?"

Again, Red said nothing, merely cutting his eyes back at Blue. _You've made it clear you don't care what I have to say,_ Red thought bitingly _, so why should I say anything at all?_ He noticed that Cyan lowered his head and closed his mouth, ending his Water Gun attack before he sent it off, and turned back to eye Blue almost worriedly. Red scoffed. _Even your pokémon knows what you're doing is stupid._

Then, Blue's entire demeanor changed. His shoulders sagged and he visibly exhaled, looking up at Red almost pleadingly. "Red. Please," he signed. "I'm just… worried, and I can't be with you… alone. Please, won't you come back, at least for me? I don't want to do this…"

That was what broke the Camerupt's back, he supposed, because Red was so frustrated, he couldn't help but snappishly sign back, "For you? Why the hell do I have to do anything 'for you,' Blue? All I keep getting from you is 'me, me, me!'" He dug his heels into the ground below him. "You of all people know how important this is to me! And if you don't want to, here's an idea: _don't!"_

"Red, you don't understand!" Blue frustratedly signaled, shaking his head irritably. The comment made Red cringe. Having a tendency to be silent and only able to communicate through mouthed and gestured words had a way of making strangers assume he understood little to nothing, and although he wasn't sure what exactly Blue meant, having that thrown in his face again was certainly unpleasant.

"Oh, it gets better," Red sarcastically mouthed. He took a pointed step forward and jabbed a finger in Blue's direction. "I am done talking to you if you see me as just as stupid or useless as everyone else does." _Even though I don't want to be. It'll be a lot lonelier without you…_ "There is nothing that would keep me from doing this. I have to do this. I have to." _So, why are you making it so hard?_ "So, either get out of my way, or fight. But I'm done talking." _Unless you'd just come to your senses for even a second… This would all be over if you'd just calm down and come with me. What are you so afraid of, Blue?_ Red gnawed his lower lip slightly. _I just don't understand… and I don't really want to believe that you feel the same as everyone back in Pallet. I'm angry at you for being their Chatot right now, but… that can't be what you really think… can it?_

Blue's momentary vulnerability was over. He set his jaw, narrowed his eyes again, and stiffened his back. "Cyan, Water Gun!"

That's it, then, I guess, Red thought with an ache flaring in his chest. A little less enthusiastic than before, he made the gesture for Scratch at Cyan again for his Charmander. The pokémon took a second to catch on, but part of that was because it took the liberty of realizing Cyan was about to hit it with another Water Gun, and dodged it itself. Without pausing, Charmander whirled around and scratched Cyan across his neck as he was just finishing his misfired attack, sending the pokémon rolling away in his shell. In an almost feral battle stance, with all four of its legs to the ground and teeth bared, Charmander swayed its tail back and forth threateningly at the Squirtle—and Red could see that, despite being a Water-type, the burn on Cyan's face was beginning to take its toll.

The rest of that battle was suffocatingly silent, with neither Red nor Blue having anything else to say. Red was just grateful for Charmander's intelligence and willingness to learn, or else he was sure the battle would have been over a long time ago; Charmander quickly caught on to his orders, responding the fastest to Red tapping the ground with his feet, and whenever they fell out of sync with one another, Charmander allowed wilder instincts to kick in to help him combat this foe.

And oh, the look on Blue's face was priceless when the combination of enough Scratches and the burn on Cyan's face finally toppled the pokémon over. After snapping his jaws shut again, Blue had seemed to make it a point to say nothing, even though Red could tell he was seething with the way his jaw moved slightly, as if grinding his teeth together. He sent out the Eevee next, which Red nearly lost to a few Quick Attacks, but it must have already been tired from a previous battle or something, as a single Ember to the collar of thick fur around Luna's neck collapsed her.

Challengingly, Red raised his chin to Blue, as Charmander fell into place next to him. The pokémon seemed to be radiating pride, excitedly sweeping its tail across the ground behind it. Although Red said nothing, his look alone spoke enough words for Blue to understand: "You won't stop me. Get out of my way."

Curling a lip at him, Blue recalled Luna, then lunged forward, abruptly snatching Red by a fistful of his shirt. Staggering in surprise, Red pushed against him some, but faltered when Blue mouthed in his face, "This isn't over. You're an idiot, you're wrong, and I'll fight you every step of the way if that's what I have to do to prove it to you."

Red was just… bewildered! Who was this guy and what had he done with Blue? He kept his mouth shut, mouthing nothing back at him, but glaring back at him with all the anger he could muster. It was hard when he just felt so confused, though, wanting to shake Blue and ask him if he'd hit his head on something. Yet, being that close, he saw that Blue didn't really… seem angry, even though his grip on Red's shirt and the clenched jaw said otherwise. Somehow, he just looked so… _sad_ in the face. Going a little slack, Red finally started to put some things together. This wasn't the first time Blue had acted out in a totally unexpected way, but usually, those episodes were short-lived, and caused by his hermit of a sister. He wondered… between Blue's exhaustion at the lab, his sudden concern for Red's safety, his frustrated anger—had something else happened between Blue and Daisy? Red winced, more than he already was from Blue's aggressive hold. Whatever had happened, it had to have been far worse than anything before… Red had never seen Blue like this.

"Blue," Red finally mouthed, giving his friend one last chance, "you don't have to prove anything to me, man, please. This _is_ stupid, you're right about that, why are you fighting me? A-are… are you okay…? Did something happen last night?"

"Don't flip this on me!" Blue seemed to fire back immediately, shaking Red out by his shirt, then shoving him away. With that, he started to walk away, heading further along the route, toward Viridian City, if Red's memory served.

Feeling deflated and more lost than ever, Red sunk to his knees and glanced at Charmander. "Guess it's you and me, then, huh?" he signed at the pokémon.

Charmander was staring intently after Blue, swishing its flaming tail angrily, and growling, given then subtle movements in its throat and bared teeth. Red laughed halfheartedly and stroked its head to try to calm it down. A tiny protrusion from between Charmander's shoulders gave him pause, and he glanced at it, cocking his head. It was like a small horn or perhaps a small, decorative crest, and after a moment, he remembered learning that Charmander had a slight difference between male and female. He chuckled weakly again. _Okay, so you're a guy._ _Probably still gonna just call you Charmander, though… best not to confuse you…_ He blinked. _Wait, that means when you evolve, I'm still going to be calling you Charmander… Oh, that'll be confusing._

Charmander headbutted his hand affectionately, and then looked up at him excitedly, despite how tired he clearly was from the battle just then, as if to ask, "What's next?"

"Guess we'll see when we get there," Red signed back. He gave the pokémon a joking grin. "Fearow, idiots… wonder what else will get thrown at us? Guess we'll find out together, huh?"


	4. Leaf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red meets someone new.

They had made it! Viridian City at last!

It had taken a combination of teamwork and pure instinct on part of both Red and Charmander, as making their way through the rest of Route 1, half-beaten as Charmander was, was quite the challenge. After a point where Red had started to panic at every small movement he caught from the corner of his eye, especially after the horrible near-miss with the Fearow earlier that very day, he had bent low to Charmander, stroking the pokémon's head, and tried as hard as he could to tell him to go on ahead. His plan was that, since Charmander was largely untrained and still in his first evolutionary stage, he'd still behave more instinctively rather than dependent on Red for directions as most other trained pokémon he had seen in his life did. In the back of his mind, he had mutinously thought about how such thinking would have been believed to be far beyond his comprehension by many back in Pallet Town—but there he was, thinking ahead, finding ways to conquer his problems without their upturned noses pointed his way. He had soaked up all information he had read regarding pokémon in school like a sponge, no matter how much his 'dumb' classes loved to shove it down his throat he was incapable.

Although it had been hard to get Charmander to go on ahead, to stop him from falling into step next to Red and curiously looking up at him every few seconds, eventually, the pokémon had caught on. Red had succeeded in doing this by picking him up and setting him a ways ahead; then, retreating behind Charmander, he bent to a knee and made a couple of gestures that meant "walk on" in sign language. Ultimately, Charmander had blown a puff of frustrated smoke, and then started picking his way further along the route, warily throwing looks at the forestry surrounding Route 1. Natural instincts kept him from going into the trees, where his tailflame would have made him a beacon for predators, and his escape routes would have been limited, meanwhile his instinctive caution gave Red indicators of trouble. Such as when a Vulpix scurried nearby and Charmander had jerked his head to glance at the creature before it had a chance to even vanish into the underbrush of the forest. Finding some amusement in his circumstances, he had jokingly thought to himself: _Man, am I even the trainer here? I feel like I'm learning more from him than the other way around._

But as soon as they had breached Viridian City, Red had done the same call for Charmander as before, tapping the ground hard with his foot and making the 'Charmander' gesture. The pokémon had immediately turned to look at him, and eagerly bounced back beside him. Red couldn't believe how gratifying it was to overlook that city as they pressed deeper into its boundaries. There weren't many people on the blue-gray sidewalks, and the buildings were sparse and intersected by thickets of trees and stones, the signs along the roads and the streetlamps were rusty and cracked, but he was _there._ That was what mattered. It could have been the biggest slum on that side of the equator, and he would have been just as thrilled. It had felt like an uphill struggle, but he had made it from Pallet Town to Viridian City, just him and Charmander!

Tossing a look over his shoulder, back at the grassy path behind them, he glanced down at the pokémon. _We did it,_ he thought. _Our first real challenge, and I've already proved I'm way more capable than any of them ever thought. We even beat Blue!_ That thought had him grinning like a criminal, and he rubbed his hands together like it, too. Yet, then, he winced. _Oh, but Charmander's pretty tired after all of that…_ He frowned and picked the pokémon up, ignoring Charmander's tiny pushes and nips of protest. In the end, he merely curled up in Red's grasp and flicked his tail irritably here and there.

He passed by a few others in the city's streets, but strangely, he found they were fairly empty, as he searched the city for a Pokémon Center, where he knew he could heal his new fiery friend for free. Interestingly, he found a Pokémon Gym before he located his target. A plaque on the front of the building claimed it to be a Ground-type gym, and best suited for trainers with four gym badges or more. That made Red shake his head and step back. _Yeah, no Ground-types for us,_ he thought amusedly. _Not yet, anyway._ With a longing glance back at the Gym—oh, he had seen one in person before, but looking at it with a pokémon in his arms was a totally different feeling!—he shuffled along the path again, the Pokémon Center's bright, orange roofing well in sight at that point.

There was also a Poké Mart in sight, with its softly glowing blue signage, and a familiar, tawny-haired boy entering its doors. Noticing Blue made Red pause briefly in place, and his breath hitch… Which only served to make him internally curse himself. _He doesn't want anything to do with you, idiot,_ Red thought aggravatedly to himself, _so leave him alone._ Repeating that to himself as he went to pass, he grew more and more frustrated as his legs grew slower and he found himself swerving to enter the Poké Mart anyway. Even Charmander, upon catching sight of Blue at an aisle in the store, tilted his head to look up at Red, as if to ask, "Why is he here again?"

Swallowing, Red both hoped Blue might spot him, and hoped that he wouldn't. Looking down slightly from his old friend, he hastily moved to a different aisle, but found it too difficult to think about what to buy—especially considering he hadn't exactly been planning to buy anything yet. Instead, he found himself waiting for Blue to leave, but the other seemed to be taking his time. Finally growing too annoyed to wait anymore, Red had just snatched some Potions from the shelf and moved to the counter. Between what he knew shop clerks usually said and lip reading, he expected to be able to tell what the man at the counter had to say easily, but the man's mouth moved was instead something entirely unexpected. The man's eyes had lit up in recognition, and he had put his hands on the hips of his blue, Poké Mart uniform. Saying something Red couldn't make out, he brandished an envelope, and pushed it across the counter toward Red. Quickly glancing down to try to glean what information he could from what was written on it, he discovered it was addressed for Professor Oak's Lab. Perhaps it had been delivered to the Poké Mart by accident? The Rapidash Mail Service could certainly make mistakes at times…

 _But wait, what does he want me to—_ Red's thoughts were cut off when someone shouldered him out of the way. Charmander squirmed in his hold as he started to fall and, of course, it was Blue standing there at the counter in his place. Head cockily tilted and a stupid smirk on his face, he was mouthing, "Sure, I can take that to my ole' Gramps. No problem. This joker beside me would _never_ make it." As if knowing Red would try to spitefully snipe something back at him, Blue shot him a knowing, pointed look, one that made Red's muscles all falter. A look that said, "You can disagree if you want, but then he'll know you're deaf, and he could go squealing to the gym leader. Good luck with getting him to let you challenge him after that."

Gaze dropping to Blue's shoes, Red said nothing and waved a hand at the clerk. It was a "forget it" kind of gesture, one that he knew made him look stupid or arrogant, or any number of things hearing people enjoyed telling him he was whenever he responded inappropriately to a situation, but he felt too defeated in Blue's presence to care. He saw Blue start to walk away, but still didn't look up for a few seconds. Instead, he only did so because Charmander started to growl (Red could feel the vibrations against his arms) and he saw Blue stop—in front of another pair of shoes, red and white ones with odd, oversized blue socks sticking out the top.

Following those shoes, he traced her body upward and Red realized it was a girl with long, dull brown hair. She waved animatedly at Blue and said something to him, to which Blue flicked a fleeting glance to Red, smirked, and replied to her, "Well, hey! My name's Blue. Leaf's an awesome trainer name!" Blue winked and put his hands behind his head, in a cocky attempt at looking more relaxed or tougher than he really was, or something equally as stupid as that. Red honestly wasn't sure just _what_ the idiot was hoping to accomplish, but the scene made him want to grind his teeth. "Where do you come from? I'm from Pallet. Oak's grandson, ha!"

The girl—Leaf, apparently—cocked her head like a curious Growlithe at him, making her hair fall from over her shoulders and dangle away from her head. Her hat started to slip and, unblinkingly, she moved to catch it and hold it in place as she looked Blue up and down from that odd angle. But that wide, beaming smile never left her face. She spoke in such fast words that Red hadn't a prayer of making out anything she had to say, aside from a word here and there, and even those were likely errant. At some point, though, she held up a Poké Ball that was green instead of red on the top.

In kind, Blue raised Cyan's Poké Ball—one whose black, center line was painted over in gold, and the red on top had been covered by a gleaming, ocean blue. Clenching his jaw to keep from interrupting them and making a scene in the red-hot anger building in his chest, Red recognized it, and the fact he was showing it off to her without mentioning him at all… It hurt. He knew it would be an odd conversation opener, for sure—"hey, look at this Poké Ball my best friend made me!"—but he still hated it, anyway, that Blue failed to mention him at all, especially when he was standing _right there_ beside Blue!

Red, in one of his crafts classes that he was often forced into at school, had painted over a normal Poké Ball after hearing Blue lament how ugly Great Balls were in their design. Some point after starting his journey, Blue had switched out Cyan's standard Poké Ball for the painted one. Yet, there Blue was, and all he said to Leaf about the Poké Ball was, "This here's Cyan, my Squirtle. We're gonna go far, me and him, and I'm sure you and your Bulbasaur will do the same, Leaf…" Shuffling a little closer to her he added, "Maybe together, if you don't wanna go it alone?"

Feeling a bit ill for some reason, Red decided against the Potions, at least until Blue was gone from the Poké Mart. He attempted to brush past him and Leaf to leave the store, leaving the Potions on the counter with the clerk, but was stopped when he saw Leaf perk back up and shoot something back at Blue… Which made Blue's arms drop from behind his head and him blink at her in abject confusion.

"Uh… pardon?" Blue asked, blinking fervently.

This time, Red understood exactly what Leaf said. "Nope!" she seemed to sing at him, skipping past Blue and further into the store to pick something out of a shelf. Not feeling the least bit guilty about the small triumph he felt, Red gave Blue a small, winning smile, and decided to stay in the store after all. For emphasis, Charmander hissed at Blue, the flame at the end of his tail burning brighter momentarily.

With his face starting to flush pink, Blue curled his lip, and snapped at Red, "What do you think you're looking at? Get lost!" Yet, bizarrely, he was the one that left the store after, shoulders arched. Although Red had taken a step back at Blue's hostile words and expression, he felt an almost guilty, almost mischievous sense of pride, relief… _something._ Why did he feel that?

Feeling smug that Blue had been rejected so soundly nonetheless, Red went to turn on his heel and march back to the counter, but when he turned around, he found himself nose-to-nose with Leaf. Gray-brown eyes bored into him and she waved exuberantly, far too close for his comfort, and started speaking at an impossible pace to keep up with, causing him to scramble away from her. Man, did he _hate_ it when people snuck up behind him like that! Was it really that hard to simply go around front of him and try to talk to his face? Giving her a funny look, he expected her to stall and try to ask him questions, but she kept rambling on without any indication of stopping.

He noticed the clerk waving at him from the counter, and then he held up a Potion. Red saw him and nodded. Tucking Charmander tighter beneath one arm (much to the pokémon's protest), Red held a hand up at Leaf, feeling guilty, as he was sure the gesture came across as something akin to "shut up."

Of course, he soon learned he shouldn't have felt guilty at all. Even when he went over to the counter and finally bought the Potions, Leaf followed him closely, with a skip in her step, still attempting to talk to him. As the clerk was giving Red his Potions following the purchase, he noticed the clerk grin in amusement at him, and say something. "You… friend there. She… nice, ain't she?"

Awkwardly, Red shrugged at the clerk, took his Potions, and sidestepped Leaf to leave the store. He halted when she darted out after him and ran ahead, walking backwards in front of him with her hands neatly clasped behind her back. From her mouth, he was finally able to catch, "I'm… from… Erika! See?" She held up that green Poké Ball again. "Where... get…? …Charmander… out?"

 _Everything's just an uphill battle, isn't it?_ Red thought almost resignedly. _Look, Leaf, I know I was getting a little mad when Blue was hitting all over you, but I've got far better things to do. Starting with healing my Charmander._ With a falsely patient smile at her, he pushed past her and scurried toward the Pokémon Center. Finally, he felt comfortable recalling Charmander to hand him to the nurse at the orange, U-shaped counter inside.

Of course, none other than Leaf showed up at the counter seconds after, leaning dramatically over it next to him, and excitedly holding out her green Poké Ball for the nurse next, seeming to be saying, "Oh, oh, here! Here!"

Sour expression on her face, the nurse wordlessly took Leaf's Poké Ball, adding it to the enormous, clunky machine behind the counter with Red's. Leaf turned to him and chattered away some more.

Even without being able to hear, Red raised a brow at her, and wondered if she just ever would shut up. _Guess she's still better than Blue,_ he thought with a small snicker to himself, turning away from her. _Might not be that bad if I can't get rid of her. But I can't let her find out I'm deaf… She said something about Erika, didn't she? That's… ugh, what city's gym leader is that again…?_

Leaf slowly poked him on the shoulder. He jerked away from her and shot her a dirty glare. She cocked her head at him cutely, same as she had done to Blue, and said, "Come on! …speak… all?"

 _Okay, maybe she can be a bit worse than Blue if I can't get rid of her,_ he thought mutinously. _This definitely isn't lasting beyond this city. I'm gonna take a hostel room here for the night and it'll be goodbye, Leaf, tomorrow morning…_

_…Right?_


End file.
